Legend of the 22-inch mirror

date days since
purchase
event
1993
22-Sep 0 purchase mirror from Intermountain Optics
30-Sep 8 mirror arrives
3-Oct 11 tool poured [oops - directly on glass]
9-Oct 17 edges wrecked while chipping off tool #1; tool #2 poured
1994
17-Jan 117 grinding begins! [LA quakes]
28-Feb 159 grinding ends! use Steve's machine #1 to polish before he sells it
10-Mar 169 inverted polishing imparts BIG scratches
14-May 234 new 16" sub-D tool poured
21-May 241 broke new tool removing it from cast
22-Jul 303 on critical path for OSP; Chuck's getting parts
28-Jul 309 sellout: Steve will finish mirror
2-Aug 314 Chuck's out of time; Burke tube purchased
9-Aug 321 mirror finished! original scratches still visible..
9-Aug 321 hastily-made tube and mirror support shows asymmetric images [time's up for OSP]
11-Aug 323 OSP - arrive with no 22", damaged van [& garage]
26-Aug 338 fine-tune Burke tube; astigmatism in one quadrant?
need to make a decent scope for testing..
1995
20-Feb 516 telescope-building at Chuck's [first of several]
20-Jul 666 call from Chuck: it's now or never for OSP '95!
22-Jul 668 upper cage and mirror supports
10-Aug 687 telescope finished! - but mirror still looks astigmatic..
16-Aug 693 cheap local coating for OSP
24-Aug 701 OSP again: great views at low power... ParaCorr doesn't help
1996
14-Jan 844 mirror exam w/Steve and Howard: is it the scratches?
19-Feb 880 e-mails w/Mel: it's in the glass
14-Apr 935 clean tool for 22"; contemplate options
28-Apr 949 e-mail: 22" for sale
14-Jun 996 turn down only offer - $1500
15-Aug 1,057 OSP yet again, with badly figured [and tarnished] mirror
mid-Dec 1,057 Steve finishes the new grind/polish machine
1997
4-Jan 1,200 grinding resumes; MMarathon begins 4/7! [oops]
6-Jan 1,202 grinding ends; all scratches removed!!
13-Jan 1,209 polishing begins
19-Jan 1,215 focal length dropping
6-Feb 1,233 still polishing, now >16 hours..
13-Feb 1,240 new pitch
16-Feb 1,243 1/2 hour with tool on top finishes polishing [w/o scratches..]!
20-Feb 1,247 figuring begins
27-Feb 1,254 mirror finished! Cut truss-tubes shorter and check results
6-Mar 1,261 take mirror home for star-testing
11-Apr 1,297 Canby tests; mirror fails Ronchi test.
4-May 1,320 rework mirror; Steve and Allan really like it!
15-May 1,331 star-test fails.. at 1063x; Ronchi good, but not great.
18-May 1,334 mirror finished! Steve to Riverside. Rebuilt upper cage [bad idea..]
19, 21 1,335 now a touch overcorrected, astigmatic? [error in mirror or cage?]
18-Jun 1,365 mirror passes all interior tests [just like a month ago]; ship it!
22-Jun 1,369 build a shipping box: too small? [oops]
24-Jun 1,371 ship mirror in custom box via UPS ground svc [will UPS strike?]
wife's purse stolen; close all accounts!
8-Jul 1,385 packing store: check bounced [VISA]
21-Jul 1,398 QSP mirror coating company: check bounced [send another]
30-Jul 1,407 mirror leaves QSP!
1-Aug 1,409 UPS strike begins; service is 10% of normal..
7-Aug 1,409 the Prodigal Pyrex arrives..


"Steve" is Steve Swayze, of Swayze Optical.

"Chuck" is Chuck Dethloff, owner of Telescopes and More, a local professional telescope-maker who generously allowed me to take up some of his time, tools and garage-space while building the telescope

Other names refer to local telescope-making veterans in western Oregon.